Come What May
by Atarashii
Summary: Sain makes a wish, and it comes true . . . leading to some, er . . . 'changes'. (KentxSain)
1. Chapter One

**Title**: Come What May  
**Author**: Atarashii [chibikits(at)livejournal(dot)com]  
**Series**: Fire Emblem  
**Rating**: PG  
**Genre**: AU-ish/General/Romance  
**Pairings**: KentxSain, RathxWil, RavenxLucius, LegaultxHeath, along with some others that I'm too lazy to list   
  
**Warning**: Feminization of a main character. Shounen-ai . . . er, kind of. Het . . . again, kind of.   
  
**Disclaimer**: Fire Emblem and its associated character do not and never will belong to me. The plot of this fic, however, does.   
  
**Author Notes**: Do not ask me where I got the idea for this fic. It's a long, and pointless explanation. Plus I have no honest clue.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**Come What May  
Chapter One**   
  
-----------------------------   
  
Uncharacteristically silent, the 'green lance' stared ahead into the flames, lost in thought. Idly, he listened to the conversation around him, leaning back with a small sigh. Running a hand along the length of his lance, he mulled over how smooth the wooden shaft was, and how well it had handled its usage. Having been a while since he'd purchased the weapon, it still managed to thrust well enough, its silver tip easily penetrating and . . .   
  
"Sain?"   
  
Clearing his throat lightly, the red-haired knight stared down at his partner, "Er, I . . . I was wondering if I could talk to you . . ."   
  
"Oh, Kent, hey!" Setting the lance aside, Sain cast a bright smile up, "What's up?"   
  
"I just need . . . another's opinion on something." The taller man shifted upon his feet, before settling down on the log besides the other, "Seeing as, well . . . you seem, er . . . 'experienced' on the matter at hand, I figured you would be the best to ask about it."   
  
"Hm?" Smile remained in place, even as golden eyes glanced over, resting upon Kent's light crimson gaze, "Wait . . . something in which _I'm_ experienced in? Well, seeing as you're more of a swords person yourself, although I still say that lances bring more satisfaction in their results . . ." He grinned. "Does this have something to do with matters of the heart, oh boon companion of mine?"   
  
Blinking once, a small flush began to colour his cheeks the same shade as his hair, "Er, well, now that you mention it . . . yes, actually."   
  
"Oh . . ." For a brief moment, Sain's face seemed to fall, although the change was barely perceptible to those who weren't looking for it. He forced his grin to broaden, mentally going over which female in which Kent could have his eyes upon.   
  
_There's Fiora . . . those two are both so _serious_, but . . . I can't see a relationship between the two working . . . too dull, and too strict . . . being with her oddly enough manages to make Kent even more uptight than normal . . ._   
  
"There's someone I've known for a while, and . . . I never thought I could consider this person as anything more than a good friend . . ."   
  
_Then there's Lady Lyndis. Those two seem to get so well together . . . plus one can't forget the almost obsession Kent shows for her health and safety . . . he's so strong in the ideal of being her servant, and her servant alone, though . . ._   
  
". . . But, I can't help but feel as if . . . I feel something more for them. Something that goes along the line of, well . . . I guess it could be referred to as love."   
  
_I doubt that he feels _anything_ for Florina, or Rebecca . . ._   
  
"Sain." Oblivious of the fact that Sain was anything _but_ listening to him, Kent looked towards him, staring steadily into his companion's eyes, "Sain, what do I do? How can I tell this person that I have feelings for them . . . that I love him, even?"   
  
"Kent." Looking up, a flicker of pain reflecting within eyes so usually filled with laughter,Sain bowed his head, "I . . . I'm not the best person to ask about this, after all. I mean, heh." He laughed, running fingers through brown bangs, "Y'know that, well. I'm not good with actually getting the girl, no matter how hard I try . . . So, I don't know what to tell you." He grabbed his lance, jumping up onto his feet, "Well, er . . . no matter what, whoever the girl is, I hope she realises just how lucky she is to have you."   
  
_Girl? She? Wasn't the fool _listening_ to what I said?_ Hiding a frown, rising to his own feet, Kent reached a hand out towards his friend, "Sain, were you not listening to . . ." He trailed off, hand falling back to his side as he watched the other leave, ". . . me." Frown now visable upon handsome features, Kent stared after his retreating form, "Of course, should have known . . . of _course_ he's thinking of the opposite gender at a time like this . . ."   
  
He closed his eyes, frown fading to be replaced with a small smile, _But of course as fate would have it, I fell in love with the female-obsessed male in our group._   
  
-----------------------------   
  
The other members of the traveling mercenaries watched as Sain marched through the camp, lance in hand. Ignoring his fellow comrades-in-arms, the green-armoured palain headed over to where he'd reined his mount, setting the weapon aside.   
  
"Hey there, Lyth." Smiling towards the chestnut-coloured, and reaching out, he began to untie the reins with one hand, the other running along the length of her neck, "It's getting late, but . . . a ride sounds nice around now." He stole a glance over his shoulder, before putting one foot in the stirrup, heaving himself up into the saddle with ease, "And a ride we're going to have."   
  
Taking a firm grip on the leather reins, he nudged against Lyth's side with the heel of his boot, clicking lightly with his tongue, "Come on, girl. Let's ride!"   
  
Nickering, tossing her head, the mare took off, hooves kicking up both dirt and grass as she galloped from the encampment. Her rider laughed, then, a soft sound that rode upon and carried through the air.   
  
He smiled, drawing in a deep breath, drawing Lyth to a halt, patting her neck lightly once more.   
  
"It's such a nice night out, tonight . . ." He closed his eyes, tilting his head back and smiling up at the stars above, "Perfect night for stargazing, or for two lovers to . . ." Sain trailed off, sliding from the saddle onto the ground, ". . . Lovers . . . Oh, Lyth . . . at this rate, I'm never going to find someone . . . I flirt and act like I do to 'scare off' possible candidates . . ." He paused, running his fingers through his mare's reins, "After all, the only girl I need is right here."   
  
Lyth nickered once again, drawing back and tossing her head once more, stamping the ground with one hoof as if to agree.   
  
Sain grinned, "But, that doesn't matter, because the one person I could ever truly say I loved . . . is the one man that is unattainable." Shaking his head, and falling back onto the grass, the brown-haired knight stared up into the starlit sky, "Of course I have to fall in love for the one man who is as straight as can be . . . I bet . . ."   
  
His horse laid down beside him, nibbling on thin blades of grass as her master continued to speak.   
  
"Mm . . . a shooting star. Look there, Lyth." Tilting his head back once more, the knight sighed as he took in the sight of the object shooting across the sky's expanse, ". . . You know, I heard of this one thing that some people do when a star falls like that. Something about wishing . . . I doubt it works, though, but . . . Ah, what the heck."   
  
Sain drew in another breath, exhaling slowly, "I wish that I could become female - a woman - the one thing in which is seems Kent desires most. Perhaps, then . . . perhaps then he might love me as much as I love him . . ."   
  
A light snort came from the mare beside him, and quirking an eyebrow, he turned his head to look towards her.   
  
"Right, Lyth . . . I agree. Foolish wishing, hm? Then again, that is why it's called 'wishing', eh?"   
  
She snorted once more.   
  
"Lyth . . ." He stifled a yawn, curling up against the equine's warm form, ". . . We should . . ." His eyelids began to close of their own volition, ". . . be . . . heading . . ." Trailing off, he nestled further against him, "back . . ."   
  
Soft sigh slipped from his lips, bangs falling over closed eyes as his chest began to rise and fall in time to his now evened breathing.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
The tactician headed through their camp, checking on the troupe's members as per usual for him at night. He smiled, giving a small, cheerful wave to those still awake as he passed by them.   
  
"Lord Mark, wait up!"   
  
Mark blinked in surprise at the shout, pausing midstep to look over in the direction in which it came. From the midst of darkness appeared a familiar form, the red-haired knight same-looking as usual save for lack of armour.   
  
"Sir Kent . . . something the matter?"   
  
"Lord Mark, I . . ." He drew to a halt, giving the shorter man a slightly strained smile, "I was wondering . . . by any chance have you seen Sain?"   
  
"Sir Sain . . . ?" Mark blinked, hand rising to adjust his glasses as he shook his head, "No, I'm afraid not . . . isn't his horse with the others?"   
  
"No . . ." Frown replacing his smile, Kent looked to the side, "I think I'm going to go and see if I can find him. The bloody fool probably went for a ride and ended up lost."   
  
"Right, right . . . I hope you find him, Sir Kent . . . although I'm sure he just went for a ride, like you said." Looking a bit lost for a moment, before returning to his original train of thought, Mark cast the paladin a small smile, "I'm going to check up on the rest of the group . . . oh, and . . . Sir Kent, for the upteenth time, please do _not_ refer to me as 'Lord'."   
  
Without another word, the brown-haired and green-cloaked tactician bowed before slipping on past him.   
  
Kent watched him leave, before turning, making his way back the way he'd come and over towards the tied up horses. Noticing his master's arrival, the paladin's stallion stamped the ground with his hooves, nickering towards him.   
  
"Woah there, Kain. Calm down." Once in the saddle, Kent scratched behind his steed's ears, "Kain, I have a feeling that you might know where Sain and Lyth are, hm?" He couldn't help but smile then, knowing of the affections between the two horses, "Well then . . . take me to her. For where Lyth is, Sain isn't far behind."   
  
Rearing back on hind legs, Kain brought his forefeet back onto the ground, kicking up dust as he bounded from the camp's sight.   
  
The two rode on through the nearby plains, the sole audible noise being the sound of the equine's hooves striking the grass below.   
  
Kain nickered, coming to an abrupt halt; one that would've sent any inexperienced rider flying from the saddle. Used to the stallion's firey nature, Kent relaxed his grip on the reins, peering through the darkness surrounding them. Just barely was he able to make out the form of another horse, and the human curled up against the mare's side.   
  
"Sain!" Slowly, Kent made his way over towards his partner's side, a smile crossing his face as he took in the other man, "Of course the fool didn't get lost . . . he ended up falling asleep."   
  
_Well, then . . . no point in waking him up, now is there?_   
  
Gently, ever so gently, Kent drew Sain into his arms, startled at how much . . . lighter . . . the other was than he expected him to be. Straightening up, the redhead managed to ease the sleeping form onto his steed, remounting the saddle soon after.   
  
His horse was more intelligent that others tended to give equines credit for, and he nickered in a soft tone for the mare to come with them.   
  
Smile never fading as he watched Lyth head over to them, Kent shook his head, before securing one arm around Sain's waist, the other keeping a firm grip on his reins.   
  
"Come on, then, Kain . . . Lyth. Let's get back to camp."   
  
-----------------------------   
  
"Sain . . ."   
  
In the darkness of the tent in which he shared with the other man, Kent was able to silently study the face of his heart's desire without fear of being found out.   
  
Lifting a hand, fingers brushed the bangs lightly from Sain's closed eyes, before trailing down along his face. Cupping the sleeping one's face within the palm of his hand, and running a thumb lightly against his lips, Kent hesitated. From previous experience, he knew that it took a lot to wake up the brown-haired knight, but still . . . was he so willing to take the risk?   
  
He was.   
  
Bending over, Kent brushed his mouth against Sain's in a light kiss, drawing back seconds later.   
  
"Mm . . ." Light eyelashes brushed against pale skin, and the redhead froze, staring at the other as he stirred. Another soft murmur slipped from his throat, before the form stilled, chest beginning to rise and fall with even breaths once more.   
  
Kent, himself, began to breathe again as well.   
  
He smiled, raising his hand to press it against his own mouth.   
  
"Sain . . ."   
  
He drew a blanket over Sain, brushing a hand against his bangs once more, before retreating to his side of their tent, falling back against the sleeping roll with a light sigh. Not even bothering with his own clothes, Kent tugged his own blanket up, turning onto his side and succumbing to sleep and dreams of a certain brown-haired, golden-eyed young man . . .   
  
-----------------------------   
  
Night soon gave way to the morning, and the camp was alive with activity . . . from all those awake, that is. The usual people who could be found sleeping in were, as per usual, sleeping in. Neither of the three lords nor Mark seemed to mind, though, as they conversed over coffee and tea on what their course of action for the day was to be. The others awake were tending to their horses, or taking care of breakfast . . . eating or helping to cook it, that is.   
  
Sain was oblivious to all the action going on outside of the tent, though.   
  
"Sain!" Sticking his head in through their tent's flap, Kent frowned at his partner, "Sain, come on! It's time to be up!" Frown darkened, before he sighed an exasperated sigh as he noticed the other's form moving underneath the blanket, "About time. Come on, now. I'll be waiting for you outside."   
  
Without another word, the flap fell back into place, leaving its sole occupant alone once more.   
  
Stirring some more, the blanket fell to the side, even as its owner sat up, stifling a small yawn. Stretching out arms above his head, before allowing them to fall back at his side, Sain raised a hand, running fingers through bangs as was habit for him to do in the morning.   
  
It was then that he noticed the _length_ of his hair . . . hair which now fell past his shoulders, stopping just a tad before his waist.   
  
It was then that he noticed that his shirt, once snug-fitting, didn't fit . . . for lack of better words.   
  
It was then that he noticed certain _other_ attributes, and came to the realisation that he was not, indeed . . . male.   
  
Instinct kicked in, and as it dictated for him - her - to do, the male-turned-female paladin did the one thing that she could think of in such a situation.   
  
She screamed.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**to be continued . . .**   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**End Notes**: For those who have doubts on the idea of Sain as a female, well . . . I have a sketch of what he would look like as a she. My friend, tFF drew it, and I will hunt anyone down who steals it or claims it as their own. (then again, will be deleting the image from the server within a couple days of posting this, so . . .) URL: img14(dot)photobucket(dot)com/albums/v41/nasali/sketchfsain01b.jpg . . . Sain = sexy female. XD;   
  
**Next Chapter**: the rest of the group - and Kent! - find out. XDDD 


	2. Chapter Two

**Title**: Come What May  
**Author**: Atarashii [chibikits(at)livejournal(dot)com]  
**Series**: Fire Emblem  
**Rating**: PG13  
**Genre**: AU-ish/Romance  
**Pairings**: KentxSain, RathxWil, RavenxLucius, LegaultxHeath, along with some others that I'm too lazy to list   
  
**Warning**: Feminization of a main character. Shounen-ai. Het. The usual, y'know.   
  
**Disclaimer**: Fire Emblem and all its associated characters do not, and never will, belong to me. Pity. Alas. The plot of this fic does, though . . . so no stealing!   
  
**Author Notes**: The first two scenes of this chapter involve some LegaultxHeath-ness (for Mel) and RathxWil-ness. The rating was upped because said scenes contain a hint of lime to them, although it's not _that_ bad. Bleh. Other than that . . . heh. It was fun writing Kent's reaction to the whole thing. Poor guy.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**Come What May  
Chapter Two**   
  
-----------------------------   
  
_He's a good kisser, despite how . . . reluctant he tends to be at first . . ._   
  
Smile ever-present, the thief reached up, entangling slender fingers within the other's hair. Drawing back, he stared into the shorter man's eyes, musing on how much more beautiful they were. They were a light shade of amethyst, darkened and hazed over with the beginning traces of desire . . . desire for _him_.   
  
Legault couldn't help but allow a small smirk to appear at that thought, and he leaned forward, brushing a kiss against his lover's ear, murmuring a soft whisper, "I love knowing that that look within those eyes of yours is something that I . . ." Low purr, bowing his head, teeth grazing lightly against the wyvern rider's neck, ". . . and I alone . . ." Small nip, ". . . can cause."   
  
Gritting his teeth at the action, Heath bit back a small moan, unconsciously clenching his hands into fists, fingernails beginning to dig into soft flesh, "L . . ."   
  
"Hm . . . ?" Smirk shifted into a broad, knowing grin, the hand not buried within green locks moving down from its place upon Heath's shoulder. Fingers traced along the bared skin of a well-tanned chest, and teeth continued to nip and tease at the neck's sensitive skin as soft sighs and gasps exhaled with the other's parted and kiss-bruised lips. Pausing both hands' movements, Legault took a moment to nuzzle against his companion's neck, "I _know_ you're enjoying this, Heath. Plus, it's not as if there's much to do on a morning like this . . . at least, not for a while . . . so . . . let's take this moment to, well . . ."   
  
Smile never leaving, although it took on a more devious look, the lavender-haired one moved his hands from their original places, pinning his lover back against the blanket-clothed ground, and straddling his waist.   
  
Heath blushed a dark shade of crimson, breath catching in his throat as he stared up at the more dominant figure, "L-Legault!!!"   
  
"Now, now, oh dragon of mine . . ."   
  
Darker blush, ". . . Not that blasted nickname . . ."   
  
"I know you'd rather be referred to that, then . . . other things, that I'm sure I could think of . . . Now." The thief, own azure-coloured eyes sparkling with unspoken mischief, stared down into Heath's face, ". . . Let's get back to _other_ matters."   
  
Bending over, he just managed to press his mouth against the other's, hands beginning to wander down south, when . . .   
  
The scream was loud, and pierced the comfortable atmosphere of the camp, causing both men to wince. The noise, having managed to somewhat succeed in shattering eardrums and causing all possible thoughts of _certain_ things to disappear, the two began to scramble.   
  
An almost crushed look crossed Legault's face, before he sighed, crawling off Heath, "Damnit. I swear, if that's that Sierra or whoever person again, I _will_ kill her. No ifs, ands, or buts."   
  
-----------------------------   
  
Unbeknownst to the thief, another was thinking along the same lines, although minus the swearing. Taking in a deep breath, a dark green eyebrow twitching in unspoken agitation, the nomad glared at the entrance to the tent.   
  
"Uhm, Rath, well . . . oh, well . . . we should go and see . . ." Normally one able to come up with something to say in any given situation, now was one of those times when the sniper was unable, ". . . should, uh . . ." He shifted from his position underneath the taller form, dark flush upon his face, ". . . go and see what's going on . . ."   
  
Slowly, ever so slowly, Rath turned his gaze back onto his lover's face, ". . . Right." Moving at a reluctant pace, he moved off the other, brushing invisible specks of dust from his clothing out of habit.   
  
Still flushed, Wil sat up, clearing his throat and rubbing the back of his neck, his own clothes just a _tad_ wrinkled here and there. He stared at the tent's closed flaps, then back towards the other, "So . . ."   
  
Once more, Rath quirked an eyebrow, gesturing a hand towards the tent's front, "You can go check things out. I'll remain here."   
  
"Sure!" The sniper paused, "Wait . . . Rath!"   
  
". . . I'll take care of cleaning up in here, Wil. I'll come out when finished."   
  
"Well, alright!" Throwing arms about Rath's neck, he kissed the green-haired man's cheek before pulling back, bouncing to his feet and out of the tent.   
  
Smiling a small smile, the nomad waited until the flap closed, settling into place once more, before beginning to work on re-rolling their sleeping rolls, and gathering up various items here and there.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
The scene in which Wil emerged into was, well . . . just a word bordering on hectic. The three lords, startled looks upon their faces were looking from one person to another, while the others awake at the time were beginning to drift into view as well.   
  
Serra, having been awake for the past fifteen minutes or so now, was not the cause of the disturbance . . . for once, that is.   
  
Looking more than a bit flustered, Mark rushed about the camp, muttering something under his breath about 'screaming banshees' and the likes. Running from one tent to the other situated about the small clearing-like area in which the others remained, he drew back the flaps to question on whether or not the occupants inside were alright.   
  
Simple enough, or so it seemed.   
  
Disregarding the tent in which Kent and Sain shared - although it was more like he couldn't see it - Mark hesitated outside of Raven and Lucius' tent. He eyed its flaps, for some reason feeling more nervous than normal for him.   
  
With a gulp, he reached out, fingers brushing against the fabric before he froze as an audible moan drifted on out.   
  
Being the somewhat smart tactician that he was, despite the fact that his tactics were more or less . . . not all that strategic, Mark stared at the tent's entrance, debating on whether or not to continue with barging in. His debate was decided as yet another moan sounded, followed by a breathless shout of what seemed to be passion.   
  
_. . . No need to check on them! Things are fine, now . . ._ He slowly backed up, turning around and dashing back to the centre of the camp.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
_Breathe, Sain, breathe._   
  
The female managed to do that, although her hand continued to tremble, along with the rest of her form. The breaths she took were short, quick breaths, in an attempt to calm herself down to the point in which she could reassess the situation at hand.   
  
What _situation?!_   
  
She laughed them, a soft, nervous laugh, even as gradually her hands and rest of her quelled their shaking.   
  
"I . . . I shouldn't have screamed like that . . ." Her voice, a few pitches higher than normal, although remaining more or less recognizable, spoke the obvious, "But . . . this whole . . . _how_ . . . I . . . I . . . I'm . . ." Trailing off, Sain closed her eyes, biting down on her lower lip, "I . . . the others . . . worried about the scream, should . . ."   
  
Once again, she trailed off, opening her eyes once more to stare ahead.   
  
Not another word was spoken, even as she rose to her feet, a hand rising and running through her lengthened hair. Letting the hand fall to her side once more, she inhaled a deep breath, exhaling before pulling the flap back, and exiting it.   
  
She ran smack dab into an all-too familiar man, stumbling back with a startled shout, "Oh!" Her arms flailed as she lost balance, and she fell back, eyes closing as she mentally braced herself for impact.   
  
It never came.   
  
Strong arms caught her, breaking the fall and saving her from harsh impact with the hardened ground.   
  
Kent frowned, staring down into the woman's face, before looking towards the tent in which he shared with his partner. For a brief moment, he felt as if a knife had been stabbed into his chest, and his breath caught in his throat, _So . . . Sain found someone . . . I should've known . . . but how did he . . . I was there with him, and . . ._   
  
". . . K-Kent?"   
  
The voice drew him out of his thoughts, and Kent stared down into the other's face, wondering as to how she could know of his name.   
  
It was then that he began to notice striking similarities between her, and the partner in which he so secretly adored.   
  
Familiar brown bangs fell into her face, and long strands of hair framed widened gold-coloured eyes set within a feminine-structured face. She continued to stare up at him, before a light blush coloured the pale skin a light shade of pink.   
  
"Kent, could you, er . . . you can let me go now, you know." Sain laughed, a breathless, nervous laugh, ". . . Uhm . . . hey, Kent?"   
  
He stared, and stared, unable to tear his gaze from her face. Something clicked within his mind as one and one were put together, and the realization, no matter how much Kent wished _not_ to believe in, dawned on him.   
  
". . . S-Sain?!"   
  
The one he held laughed again, this one more nervous sounding than before, "I . . . well, yeah . . ."   
  
More staring, before Kent stumbled back a few steps himself, although not once did he loosen his hold upon the other's form.   
  
"Sain . . . you . . . what the . . ." Things began to spin around and around, and Kent managed to squeak out one last thing before collapsing onto the ground in a faint, ". . . _hell_?!"   
  
-----------------------------   
  
Sain found herself facing a somewhat serious dilemma. She stared at the sprawled out form of her fellow knight, rubbing her elbow and remaining in the same place in which she'd fallen onto when Kent had . . . collapsed.   
  
"Kent . . ." Heaving a sigh, and rising to her feet, she cautiously nudged his side with her foot; no response, "Well, then . . . I guess I should . . . see if one of the healers can help out here."   
  
Shaking her head, surprised as how . . . well . . . she was taking the whole situation, Sain stepped over Kent's fallen form, making her way through dense foliage surrounding their tent to where the others were. Nearing the midst of it all, the sound of her fellow comrades talking became louder with each step she took, and she paused, ducking behind one of the other tents in an attempt to calm her now disappearing nerves.   
  
_. . . How am I going to do this? I can't just jump on out, go, 'Oh, hey, everyone! This is Sain, just not the Sain in which you're all used to!' . . ._   
  
She pondered, losing herself in thought as she mulled over what to do and how to go about doing it.   
  
So lost in thought was she that she never heard the person nearing her from behind, and was unaware of their presence until a hand reached out, clamping down on her shoulder.   
  
Startled at the sudden touch, Sain just barely managed to bite down from screaming once more, whipping her head back and staring with wide eyes at the assailant.   
  
"M-m-matthew?!"   
  
The thief quirked an eyebrow at his name, withdrawing his hand and staring at the female suspiciously, "Who the bloody hell are _you_?" He paused, ". . . And how did you manage to make it past the guards to get in here in the first place?"   
  
". . . Matthew, it's me . . ." Trailing off, she inched back a little, "It's me, Sain."   
  
". . . Heh." Matthew crossed arms against his chest, "Nice one, although there's a bit of substantial evidence that clashes with that statement. Like, for one . . . the sole Sain person in this camp is _male_ . . . not female . . ." He trailed off, taking a moment to further study the other, ". . . Although . . . You _do_ look like him, kind of . . ."   
  
_. . . There is no other way to let them know, is there?_   
  
Inching back some more, and slowly rising to her feet, Sain gave Matthew one last wary look before turning, stepping out from her hiding place, and into the area where most of the others were. She fidgeted, forcing herself to relax, and waving a hand to get the other's attention, "Hello?" Bright smile was given as she noted the eyes upon her, "Oh, hey, everyone! This _is_ me, Sain, just . . . not the Sain in which you're all used to!"   
  
Dead silence met the announcement.   
  
". . . Come on, guys . . . I know this is kind of . . . a shock . . . but couldn't you react in one way or another? I mean, it isn't as if I just announced to the world that I'm not male anymore, due to odd circumstances." A pause, "Oh, wait. . . I just did. _But_!! That's nothing! Nothing to be so . . . quiet over! Scream, faint . . . do _something_?!"   
  
Wil was the first to get over his surprise, and he bounded forward, circling Sain and tilting his head, "Hm . . . It _is_ you, Sain! But . . . dare I ask what happened to you?! I mean, it's unusual for someone to go from one gender to another overnight, y'know?"   
  
". . . Yet you're not that taken aback that it did?"   
  
The sniper blinked, "No . . . should I be? I mean, it _is_ a bit surprising, but it isn't as if _that_ much has changed about you! You're still the same Sain we all know inside, right? Right?"   
  
". . ."   
  
"Sain!" Regaining control of her voice, Lyn stepped forward as well, repeating Wil's earlier actions in circling the paladin, ". . . Well, this is . . . an interesting change in development . . ." She hid a smile, attempting not to break down in laughter at the whole thing, "Did Kent find out?"   
  
"Er . . ." Sain rubbed at her arm, managing a meek nod, "He did . . . uhm . . . he kind of . . . fainted, and I was coming to see if Serra or Priscilla could check on him."   
  
Hector stared, "I can see _why_ he fainted. This does take some . . . getting used to . . ." The Ostian took a quick look around, noticing that all the other females present seemed quite fine with the change, ". . . Right . . . I'm also chancing a guess that it was _you_ in which we heard screaming earlier."   
  
Coughing at that, hiding a flush, Sain nodded, ". . . It was. Let's just say that, well . . . it was a huge surprise for me, and . . . the whole thing kind of overwhelmed me."   
  
"Heh. Serra!" The tall, blue-headed lordling waved down the cleric, "Go back with Sain to his . . . er, _her_ . . . tent, and help Kent out!"   
  
The cleric pouted, "But I'm still attempting to wake up, and you know that one as delicate as me needs to get a full hour or so to revitalise from whatever sleep I had before working!" She sighed, "But fine, fine. Because I am so _nice_ and so _kind_, of course I'm willing to make time to help some needy person like Kent out!"   
  
"I . . . don't need help." Looking somewhat dazed, Kent stumbled past Sain and Matthew, unnoticing of the two as he came to a stop. He looked around, shaking his head to clear it, "You know, I had the oddest dream. Can you believe it? I dreamt that Sain, for one reason or another, was _female_!!"   
  
"Er, Kent . . . ?" Lyn wordlessly pointed a finger, at someone standing behind the red-haired man, ". . ."   
  
Turning his head in the direction the female lord pointed towards, having a feeling that he was going to regret doing so, Kent began to feel lightheaded and dizzy again as his eyes fell upon his now female partner for the second time.   
  
"Oh, hey, Kent . . ." Sain offered him a small, hesitant smile.   
  
Kent said nothing, instead crashing to the ground once more.   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**to be continued . . .**   
  
-----------------------------   
  
**End Notes**: Some might be like, ". . . oooookay." at the reactions the mentioned characters in this chapter had. But to be quite honest, I can't see it affecting them _that_ much. I mean, heck. Look at all the other things they need to deal with time after time after time. -sweatdrop- With Kent, though, it's kind of different . . . I mean, here's the _man_ he loved, suddenly, for reasons unknown to him . . . un-male. XD; Anyways, just for the amusement of the readers, here's a brief recap of reactions:   
  
Wil: -blinkblink- . . . -smile!-  
Matthew: . . . oO;;  
Hector: . . . oO; Oookay.  
Girls (sans Serra): O.O . . . -pause- . . . XDDD!!  
Kent: . . . -THUD- (x 2)  
Serra: . . . -pout- I can't believe it! How is it possible that someone could be so good-looking! I might have competition for being the prettiest female in this camp now!   
  
Otherwise, not that big of a deal . . . everyone else will probably just be like, ". . . O.O" or ". . . oO" or ". . ." over the whole thing. Meh. Don't want to spend _too_ much time on the reactions, though. After all, I have a lot planned for this fic . . . -grins- Poor, poor, Sain . . . then again. He's (pardon, _She's_) going to have to go through a lot of the things that she used to do when male. ;3; I'll leave what exactly to the imaginations of the readers, but, hey! Although I have a good idea of what's going to go on, suggestions are always welcome. -nod-   
  
**Next Chapter**: the troubles with armour, Kent stops KOing every time he sees Sain, and . . . 


End file.
